Capital Region Musicians Write About Their Love for Stewart's

One of the first things that blew my mind about Upstate New York was the obsession with Stewarts. A certain region being obsessed with a local convenience store is nothing new, but I've never seen anything like the Capital Region's love for this particular one.

Credit: Jackson Simpson via YouTube

Sure, I've seen people wear merch of their favorite places to shop, but writing a song about how much you love a convenience store? That's a whole new level.

Take Me Down to Stewy's

In the early days of October 2025, I began to see videos across social media of a few guys dancing in front of a Stewart's in Schenectady with nothing more than the message "Coming Soon". I had no idea what would be coming, but I kept checking the poster's page almost daily.

Finally, on October 13th, it happened. Jackson Simpson, an Upstate New York native, dropped the song "Take Me Down to Stewy's". It's a parody of Cali Swag District's "Teach Me How to Dougie" focused on one thing and one thing only: Stewart's Shops.

The song was made in collaboration with azel and Grey Mizzy, two more Upstate locals who have their own verses on the track. There is also an accompanying music video, directed by 2FLYFILMS, showing the trio along with their friends, dancing and shopping around their local Stewart's.

When the great artists of the past discuss how they created their art, they always needed a muse, although I'm not sure Beethoven considered how passionate people could be about a region-specific chain of convenience stores.

Upstate New York Country Concert Calendar

Check out all the artists set to make their way to the Capital Region and Upstate New York.

Gallery Credit: Matty Jeff

Canadian Pacific Holiday Train Rolls Through The Capital Region For a Great Cause

It had been three years since the Canadian Pacific Holiday Train rolled through the Capital Region. It made three stops; Mechanicville, Saratoga Springs, and Fort Edward. The first was Mechanicville on a rainy Sunday night. This is where I enjoyed the festive holiday train. They are traveling across the country to 106 stops. At each stop, they play live music and collect donations for the local food banks. Country Artist Lindsay Ell was the musical entertainment and she was awesome. The Canadian Pacific Holiday Train also presented the Mechanicville Community Center with a check for $3500 to help restock the food bank. Even though the weather wasn't ideal, a couple of hundred families joined the fun.

Gallery Credit: Chrissy Cavotta Townsquare Media